Although a number of these options are tempting, the clear sense that the sentence wishes to convey is that Patrick wishes to lead his friends and neighbors into seditious activities.  When someone tries to encourage others to undertake such illegal acts (even if justified) is said to “incite” these others.  Although the term might be used merely to mean “to stir up,” it generally has this negative connotation.  Insofar as it is related to such “stirring up,” the word is related to the word “excite.”

According to this sentence, Paula is in need of funds that can be spent immediately, something that cannot be done by well with real estate, an asset that has worth but must be sold before it can yield its value.  “Liquidation” occurs often when one is selling assets in order to settle debts.  However, one can also be said to “liquidate” assets into a cash form that can be spent readily. 

When one channels something, he or she redirects it from one location to another.  Vincent is clearly doing this, having resolved to transfer is energy from his annoyances to productive work.   The word literally indicates a structure (manmade or natural) that allows fluid to flow, though it is often applied to any sort of medium (even electromagnetic) allowing for the passage of content from one point to another.  It is related to the word canal.

In this sentence, there is no implication that Timothy’s girlfriend would be nasty in trying to convince him into changing his attitude. The only thing that is indicated is that she is “indefatigable,” a word meaning “untiring;” therefore, the best option would be “cajole,” which means to persuade insistently or even through flattery. Though no flattery is implied in our sentence, the insistence is implied, and that suffices in comparison with the other options.

Since the child is stealing something insignificant, the best option is “pilfer.” Although several of the options pertain to stealing, only “pilfer” adds the sense of taking something of little value—in this case, “some small candy.”

When someone “goes beyond” the boundaries, he or she is said to “transgress” them. The “trans-” prefix means “across” as is evident in words like “translate” (to carry across—languages in this case) and “transform” (to change “across” from one form or appearance to another). The “-gress” comes from the Latin for “to walk or step” found in English words like “gradient,” “grade,” and “egress.”

When someone “niggles” over the details of something, he or she criticizes minor details. In our sentence, this best captures the sense hinted at by the sister’s “streams of critical remarks over the minor details . . .” The verb “to niggle” can also be applied to one who is “niggling” over the details of a given work, even his or her own. Someone who never is satisfied with the small details of his or her (e.g.) writing will often “niggle” over these details incessantly.

The key thing to note here is that Richard's motives were prejudged in a way that appears to be negative. When someone is vindicated, he or she is cleared of suspicion. The word comes from Latin roots for “avenger.” One who is vindicated can often be said to be “avenged,” though without necessarily carrying the somewhat violent connotations accompanying that word.

For this sentence, it is necessary to avoid implying anything more than is warranted. Most of the options given have a negative connotation (i.e. “meander,” “stumble,” “tumbled,” and “veered”). In distinction from such negative words, one can be said to “range” over topics without it being implied that such ranging is mere rambling in an undirected manner; therefore, this is the best option.

Do not be tricked by the many options that appear to be similar in meaning. To “masticate” is to chew, and to “manducate” is to eat. The best term is “mascerate,” which means “to soften something by soaking it.”